Hotline #221 - December 14, 2001

Bells rang, horns blew, and large crowds gathered today as passenger rail service was reintroduced between Boston and Portland, after a 37-year absence. A 12-car inaugural train filled with invited guests -- including NARP President Alan Yorker, NARP Vice President (and TrainRiders/Northeast President) Wayne Davis, and NARP Executive Director Ross Capon. Revenue service begins tomorrow.

TrainRiders/Northeast has waged a long, 12-year, often disheartening campaign to start the service.  They were backed by the voters and government of Maine, but often stymied by opponents -- including host railroad Guilford and the government and leading newspapers of New Hampshire -- but now are already looking to future growth. Though the road was long, today represents a triumph of successful grassroots efforts.

After two trips to the Surface Transportation Board, the top speed is still just 60 mph. Guilford has said that on the basis of preliminary test results, the track is not good for 79 mph -- despite the millions in public money already spent on upgrades. After more detailed test results are available, Amtrak and the Northern New England Passenger Rail Authority will consider whether to make yet a third trip to the regulators and seek authority to run at 79 mph.

Emergency funding for Amtrak took a step forward December 7 as the Senate passed its version of fiscal 2002 defense appropriations, H.R.3338. Appropriations Chairman Byrd (D.-W.Va.) won approval of an amendment to the defense bill that allocated the remaining $20 billion of the total $40-billion emergency package passed by Congress in September. This amendment includes $100 million for Amtrak, drawing from Amtrak's total authorized funding level for fiscal 2002 ($955 million, of which $521 million was appropriated in the transportation appropriations bill, H.R.2299).

The $100 million is for capital expenses relating to "emergency expenses to respond to the September 11 terrorist attacks." As capital funding, this $100 million likely would go towards tunnel safety improvements. The money is sorely needed by Amtrak, though the amount is much smaller than larger amounts once sought for Amtrak safety/security needs (about $1.77 billion). Byrd was forced to abandon those higher levels, as he met resistance to expanding his larger "homeland security" package beyond the $20 million that the Senate approved December 7. Aviation benefited as well, getting $1.06 billion (in addition to the airlines' emergency bailout enacted in September -- $5 billion in grants, $10 billion in loan guarantees).

Another amendment, from Biden (D.-Del.) and Hollings (D.-S.C.), that was approved as part of the defense bill would prohibit Amtrak from using appropriated funds or other revenues to prepare a liquidation plan, until such time that Congress enacts a new, passenger-rail reauthorization act. A 90-day clock to produce such a plan has been running since the Amtrak Reform Council found on November 9 that Amtrak would not meet its operational self-sufficiency mandate. Nullification of the liquidation-plan requirement would go a long way to reassure Amtrak's creditors and reduce the risk of a serious cash-flow problem in the coming year that could threaten Amtrak's ability to run its services (while Congress decides what to do about Amtrak).

Both the emergency funding and liquidation-plan postponement need to survive a House-Senate conference on the defense bill.

The future of any form of passenger-rail improvement bonds (such as the High Speed Rail Investment Act) is hung up in the Senate with the stalemate over the economic stimulus package. A letter signed by 26 Senators, led by Biden (D.-Del.) and Torricelli (D.-N.J.), went to Majority Leader Daschle (D.-S.Dak.) on December 12, urging him to retain the passenger-rail bond language in any agreement to end the stalemate.

Time is running out for the Senate to act during 2001. Fortunately, unenacted bills carry over into 2002.But in the meantime, states hoping to advance their passenger-rail plans sit and wait.

The Amtrak Reform Council met today to discuss various options for their Amtrak restructuring plan, due February 7. Nine options had been put together by staff since November 9, all containing elements of private-sector operation and/or regional-authority operation. Five options called for private-sector operation of long-distance routes under contract, but without specifying how that would be funded. Such unfunded scenarios increase the threat to a passenger-rail network that has national reach and includes long-distance trains that have a transportation (vs. a cruise) function. In any event, Congress would have to approve any plan formulated by the ARC for it to become reality. The ARC directed its staff to reduce the nine options to three by their next meeting, next month.

The Surface Transportation Policy Project -- an umbrella group of organizations (including NARP) with an interest in the impact of transportation policy on the environment -- marked the 10th anniversary of the landmark ISTEA legislation December 12 with the release of a report entitled, "Ten Years of Progress: Building Better Communities Through Transportation." The report, which provides a summary of national statistics documenting how transportation has changed since ISTEA was passed, is available on STPP's web site. The report is being released as part of the launch of a new national Alliance for a New Transportation Charter, which calls for changes in transportation decision-making to better meet community needs.

A temporary, replacement station in Lower Manhattan for PATH trains could be finished in two years, with the authorization by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey of $544 million for such work. PATH's World Trade Center station was largely destroyed in the September 11 attacks, forcing thousands of daily commuters to use ferry connections or already crowded services on PATH's Midtown route and on the NJT/Amtrak route into Penn Station. Another $10 million was approved to plan a permanent station that would better tie into other subway lines.

Michigan trains (Chicago to Detroit/Pontiac and Port Huron) have a schedule change effective December 17, so check with Amtrak before you travel. Some Detroit/Pontiac trains operate at later times. The westbound International runs 10 minutes later from Port Huron to Chicago -- in effect, increasing the Customs dwell at Port Huron, where there have been anecdotal reports of delays and even cross-border busing since the September 11 terrorist attacks.

Amtrak Northeast Corridor had planned a general timetable change for this month, when the last timetable (September 30) was printed. The change has been put off until January, meaning that minor changes confined to specific holiday dates (like December 24/25/31 and January 1) are not reflected in print. If you are traveling on one of those dates, confirm that your train will run by calling Amtrak or using their web site.

The Capitol Corridor in California marked has passed the ten-year mark. The first three daily San Jose-Oakland-Sacramento round-trips (one to Roseville) began December 12, 1991, and have been very successful. Earlier, we reported that there would be a 10% discount on all corridor tickets this month. Additionally, the Kids Ride Free Promotion is extended to March 25 -- kids age 2-15 ride free on weekends with one full-fare paying adult.

A three-state consortium on December 7 announced it would conduct a study of potential Boston-Montreal high-speed rail service. The route to be studied would run via Nashua, Manchester, Concord, White River Junction, and St. Albans. The $400,000 study will be paid half by the Federal Railroad Administration, and the rest by Vermont, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts.

A freight-train collision has tied up Union Pacific's St. Louis-Kansas City line. Amtrak service might not resume until sometime December 15.

The National Transportation Safety Board on December 11 released its determination of probable causes for two light-rail accidents in 2000 at Baltimore-Washington International Airport. Both accidents were caused by the operator failing to apply brakes before hitting a bumping post at the end of the line. NTSB recommends that all transit systems require employees in safety-sensitive positions to inform managers of use of prescription and other medications, increase awareness of fatigue disorders, and install better event recorders on light-rail cars.